


A Titan-Sized Brownie

by Star_Going_Supernova



Series: If You Give a Titan a Brownie [2]
Category: Godzilla: King of The Monsters (2019)
Genre: (get it? because of brownies?), Brownies, Dadzilla, First Meetings, Fluff, Found family bonding, Gen, Maddie's still living at Castle Bravo, Post-Godzilla (2014), Pre-KotM, Tooth-Rotting Fluff, her parents simply can't be trusted yet, not gonna lie I wore my Dadzilla-tinted glasses while writing this
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-07-01
Updated: 2020-07-01
Packaged: 2021-03-05 03:07:09
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,001
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25007422
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Star_Going_Supernova/pseuds/Star_Going_Supernova
Summary: In which our little runaway accomplishes her greatest goal: she gives Godzilla a brownie. Of course, she has to meet him first.
Relationships: Godzilla (Legendary | MonsterVerse) & Madison Russell, Godzilla (Legendary | MonsterVerse) & Serizawa Ishiro, Madison Russell & Castle Bravo peeps
Series: If You Give a Titan a Brownie [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1783387
Comments: 54
Kudos: 127





	A Titan-Sized Brownie

**Author's Note:**

> Many thanks to all the people who commented on _Runaway,_ because y’all literally made me want to write this! A heck of a lot of you guys wanted to see Maddie actually give Godzilla the brownies he deserved, and special thanks to Traxus_IV who brought up the idea of Serizawa introducing Maddie to Godzilla, which I desperately needed to make happen, so here we are. 
> 
> Hope y'all enjoy!!

Maddie was pulled from her sleep by a gentle hand shaking her shoulder and a voice whispering her name. She groaned and rolled her head a little. Between her moon-shaped nightlight and the cracked-open door allowing some light from the hallway to peek in, she was just able to make out Dr. Serizawa leaning over her.

“Mmm,” she said, still somewhat asleep. “Hi, Doc.”

Her eyes drifted closed as he chuckled. “Hello, Maddie. I know it’s very early, but do you think you can wake up for me?”

“How early?”

There was a rustle of cloth as he presumably checked his watch. “Just after four a.m., I’m afraid.”

“That’s _sooo_ early.” But the more she talked, the more awake she felt. Maddie pried her eyes open again, reaching up to rub one with her fist while she was at it. “Hi.”

She watched his eyes crinkle up and his mouth do that thing grown-ups always did when they were smiling really big on the inside but thought she might be offended if she noticed. Maddie wiggled around to face him.

“Why are we awake right now?” she asked.

“I was hoping to introduce you to someone. They’re on a rather tight schedule, you see, or else I would’ve let you sleep longer. I did hope to bribe you with a donut from the cafeteria.”

“Mkay,” she said agreeably. They didn’t have donuts at Castle Bravo often. Maddie didn’t move for a long moment, until finally, with a sigh, she forced herself to sit up. “I’m awake.”

Dr. Serizawa smiled. “Good. I know it’s hard to get out of bed so early, but I think you will be quite happy you did so.”

Maddie crawled over the covers to the corner nearest her shoes, in order to minimize the time she spent with her bare feet on the ground. She hopped over the cold floor and hurriedly jammed her waterproof boots on, since they were nice and roomy and it wouldn’t matter that she didn’t bother with socks.

A blanket settled over her shoulders before she could decide whether she needed a sweater or not. Dr. Serizawa then handed her a napkin-wrapped donut before scooping her up to sit on his hip. Maddie gladly leaned against his shoulder as he left her bedroom, squinting into the brighter light of the hallway.

The base was silent and still as she carefully ate her donut—he’d remembered her favorite, a Long John with chocolate icing and custard filling—while he walked through the empty halls.

“I’ve never seen it so quiet,” Maddie whispered between bites.

He nodded. “It can be an eerie experience, being awake at this hour.”

“Is everyone still sleeping?”

“Yes, with the exception of the skeleton crew. They make sure the base is okay while the rest of us sleep.”

Maddie twisted to look over Dr. Serizawa’s shoulder. The next time they passed a security camera, she waved cheerfully at it, in case whoever was on the other side was lonely.

“Is your friend on the skel’ton crew?” she asked. If his friend slept all day, maybe that was why Maddie could only meet them now, instead of at a reasonable hour.

“No,” Dr. Serizawa said with a little laugh. “My friend doesn’t work here at all.”

They entered an elevator. As they went up, Maddie licked her fingers clean before twisting one of the napkins around them to get the sticky feeling to go away.

“Tell me if you’re too cold.” He tugged her blanket up where it had started to fall off her shoulder.

Maddie gasped. “Are we going outside?” she asked excitedly. It wasn’t often that she was allowed on the top deck of the base, no matter how much she promised not to go near the edge.

The elevator opened before he could respond, answering her question by itself.

There was always something strange about being outside so early, Maddie couldn’t help but think. The way the sky was still dark but not _dark_ dark, and the stars were still kinda visible, and everything looked a little dreary and blue-grayish, like a computer screen with the brightness set at the lowest possible level.

As Dr. Serizawa stepped out onto the platform, Maddie eagerly looked around. A faint fog hovered over the ocean, which was calm and dark. There was no sign of the sun just yet. It was chilly, though her blanket was enough to keep her warm. Other than the gentle waves visible far below them, there was no movement. They were alone.

“Where’s your friend?” Maddie asked quietly. Even though there was no one to disturb, and certainly, no one still sleeping would hear her from so far, something about the morning’s stillness made her want to whisper.

“He’ll be here soon,” Dr. Serizawa promised her as he set her down. “Please be careful, Maddie. Ilene would never forgive me if you fell off the base on my watch.”

Maddie nodded solemnly and tugged her blanket closed in front of her. The water would be really _really_ cold right now, so no way did she want to fall in. She watched her step as she tread near the railing, which was dripping water.

Definitely completely awake now, Maddie slowly turned around, so she was gazing out over the empty top of the base. She wasn’t able to see anything from Castle Bravo on a normal day, but the fog made her feel even more alone. Not a single boat was in sight.

She could’ve been standing in a dream, for how unreal everything felt. It made her wonder for a second whether she was really awake or not.

Dr. Serizawa stepped up in front of her and knelt down on one knee. He looked the most excited she’d ever seen him as he gently grasped her upper arms and said, “Maddie, I’d like you to meet my friend.”

She instinctively looked over at the little shed-thing containing the elevator, but no one had stepped out of it. But she didn’t have time to be confused, because he was turning her around by her shoulders.

Looking down into the water—as much as she could, anyway, not being too close to the platform’s edge—she was just quick enough to see something break through the surface with a splash before her view was obstructed.

It took her a few long seconds to realize Godzilla himself had risen up out of the ocean right beside the base, looking down at her and Dr. Serizawa with a little puff of air.

Maddie nearly tipped over backward in her surprise, caught only by Dr. Serizawa, who had remained on his knee behind her.

“Doc,” she whispered, “is this a dream?”

“No,” he reassured her. He stood up, taking her with him to return her to his hip. “I promise you, Maddie, this is very real.”

She gaped at him while he went all the way up to the railing. “That’s Godzilla,” she finally said.

He laughed, and then Godzilla began to lean closer a little. A very deep rumble thrummed through his throat.

Poking her hand out of her blanket cape, Maddie squeaked, “Hi!” and waved at him.

Godzilla tilted his head and rumbled again. A giggle burst out of Maddie as she twisted her head to look at Dr. Serizawa and back.

“I have spent a long time studying Godzilla,” Dr. Serizawa explained. He reached his free hand out. Without hesitation, the Titan bent forward so his scales rested in the human’s comparatively tiny palm. “And since his reappearance, he has very kindly cooperated with much of our work.”

“You’re even bigger up close,” Maddie told Godzilla. He snorted.

Glancing at Dr. Serizawa, she wiggled slightly and said, “Can I stand on the railing?”

“Not the top one,” he answered as he set her down. As Maddie hopped up on the lowest of the three metal bars, Dr. Serizawa turned back to Godzilla. “This is Madison Russell.”

“Maddie for short!”

He chuckled. “Yes, Maddie for short. She’s been staying with us for a few weeks now.”

Godzilla shifted down a little so Maddie could reach him. Keeping one hand wrapped around the top bar, she reached out like Dr. Serizawa had, smiling widely when her hand met his snout.  
  
“Andrew wouldn’t believe this,” she said absently, marveling at how she could feel the light vibrations of his rumbling.

Dr. Serizawa didn’t respond, but that was okay. Most people didn’t, when she talked about Andrew.

“Do you think I’ll live here much longer?” Maddie asked. Would Godzilla mind if she pet him? With a little internal shrug, she did. He only rumbled louder, so she took that as a good sign. His scales felt really neat, and she grinned as she ran her hand over them.

“I’m afraid I’m not sure, Maddie,” he answered, but there was that particular tone that meant he probably did know but didn’t want to tell her. She secretly rolled her eyes at Godzilla. Grown-ups.

The sky was significantly brighter by the time Maddie couldn’t keep from yawning. Godzilla nudged against her before pulling away. She couldn’t find it in herself to argue that she wasn’t tired and didn’t need to go back to bed.

But there was one last thing…

“Wait!” Maddie cried. Some part of her was surprised when Godzilla instantly stopped moving. “Hang on!” She hopped off the bottom rung and tugged Dr. Serizawa’s jacket. When he obligingly crouched down, she cupped her hands around his ear and whispered, “Can we make him brownies?”

He was silent for a long moment before he laughed, louder and more heartily than Maddie had ever heard him laugh before. “Yes, Maddie,” he said, smiling. “We can do that.”

“Yes!” Maddie climbed back onto the railing and asked Godzilla, “Do you think you could come back…” She glanced over her shoulder. _A week,_ Dr. Serizawa silently mouthed at her. “In a week?” Using her belly to hold herself up, she lifted her hands and raised seven fingers. “Seven days?”

Godzilla nodded with a huff that sounded an awful lot like a little laugh.

“Great!” She waved enthusiastically as he resumed his descent into the ocean. “Goodbye! See you soon, Godzilla!”

As soon as he was completely gone, leaving nothing but ripples behind, Maddie whipped around. “How many brownies does it take to feed a Titan? A lot, right? We gotta make a whole _bunch_ of brownies so he can actually taste them!” She gasped and bounced around the platform, blanket flying behind her. “Oh, oh! What if we shape them to look like a shark! I’ve seen people do that on cooking shows—they make cakes and stuff look like things!”

• • •

In a week’s time, ingredients had arrived, brownies had been baked, and Maddie had gone to sleep earlier so she wouldn’t be tired when Dr. Serizawa came to wake her up. As soon as she realized who was shaking her that morning and why, she was up and shoving her boots on again, this time wresting a sweatshirt over her head so she wouldn’t have to worry about holding a blanket up.

She ran off down the hall, leaving Dr. Serizawa behind in her impatience. Bouncing up and down while she waited for him to catch up, Maddie thought about their final product.

Instead of carving a shark, they made what looked like a normal brownie, except it was _huge_. After baking sheet after sheet, they’d stacked them on top of one another, with a light layer of vanilla frosting between to act as glue. Once they’d had one big cube done, they made two more of the same size and pressed them all together.

To her happy surprise, Dr. Ilene and Dr. Ling were waiting outside the kitchen for them, with the rolling cart carrying the Titan-sized brownie between them. When the four of them arrived at the platform, it was to find Dr. Rick already there, fiddling with a laptop on a plastic folding table. Beside it was a camera on a tripod.

A couple lights also decorated the area, but nothing too bright. They were just enough to comfortably see by.

Since there was no sign ofGodzilla yet, Maddie went over to Dr. Rick and asked, “Are you gonna record this?”

“You bet, kiddo. Giving Godzilla brownies—how could we resist?” He gestured at the camera. “But it’s also connected to the big screen down in the hub right now, so anyone else who wants to watch it live can. We figured the big guy could do without a crowd.”

Maddie nodded. She didn’t like it when a bunch of people watched her eat either. While she waited, she made sure to check on the brownie—she _might_ have also stolen a tiny bit off a corner—and then asked Dr. Ilene if she’d heard from her parents recently.

“I actually received a call from your father just last night. He wanted me to tell you that he misses you very much and that he hopes you’re having fun here.”

“Can you tell him I am?” She didn’t _entirely_ understand why, but not long after she arrived at Castle Bravo, Dr. Ilene had told her that her parents were working through some very difficult things right now, and until they got a little better, Maddie wasn’t allowed to talk to them. Or rather, they weren’t allowed to talk to her.

Two weeks ago, she’d accidentally walked in on Dr. Ling talking to Mom. Even though the phone wasn’t on speaker mode, she could hear Mom yelling angrily. It was a little upsetting to think about, but Maddie was kinda glad she didn’t have to speak with her parents yet.

She knew all too well how sometimes people would yell at someone they weren’t angry at, just because they happened to be there. It wasn’t a nice experience. But whether that was why Dr. Ilene and Dr. Ling were keeping her mom and dad away from her, she wasn’t sure.

“I will, Maddie. If you’d like, later today, we could write an email to your parents and you can tell them all about giving Godzilla a brownie.” There was a sneaky tilt to her smile, though Maddie couldn’t think of why. It didn’t matter, though. She’d love to tell Mom and Dad how cool and nice Godzilla was.

“I’d like that a lot, please!” she said, bouncing up and down a little. Even though it was super early again, she felt much more awake than she had been last time.

“Maddie!” Dr. Serizawa, who was standing right at the railing, called. She hurried to join him, and climbed onto the lowest bar just in time to watch Godzilla rise up out of the water.

“You came back!” Maddie said, utterly delighted. Not that she _really_ thought he wouldn’t, but—she’d been forgotten about before.

Godzilla huffed at her and leaned forward so both she and Dr. Serizawa could give him a pat. When he pulled back, he jerked his head at their company, all waiting in silence further back from the edge.

“That’s Dr. Ilene and Dr. Ling and Dr. Rick! They all helped with your surprise!” She turned to check on them, and wasn’t terribly surprised to see them all keeping their distance, though the Chens had each raised a hand to wave over at them.

She looked up at Godzilla, who snorted and tilted his head a little. “You fought the bad guys in San Francisco,” Maddie explained. “And we wanted to say thank you.”

“It was all Maddie’s idea,” Dr. Serizawa added, smiling down at her. “She was rather determined.”

Shrugging, she tapped her boot against the metal rod. “I knew some bullies in school. People who defend others from bullies deserve nice things.” She peeked over at Dr. Serizawa. “And the… MUTOs were bullies, right, Doc? ’Cause bullies hurt other people.”

He reached out to grip her shoulder, and his eyes were a little pinched. That could mean a lot of things with grown-ups, but it usually meant they were thinking about something bad. “Yes, Maddie,” he said. His voice sounded weird, like there was something stuck in his throat. “They were terrible bullies.”

She nodded, feeling a tiny bit wobbly, and glanced back at Godzilla. He was watching them carefully, silent but attentive. His eyes were a tiny bit narrowed. Did he count as a grown-up? Did he know the secret grown-up languages?

“Why don’t you help Ilene and Ling with Godzilla’s surprise?” Dr. Serizawa nudged her in their direction.

“’Kay,” she said. She hopped to the ground and glanced back as she walked away. Though she couldn’t hear him, Dr. Serizawa’s head was bowed forward and his mouth was moving. Godzilla’s nostrils flared—didn’t that mean he was angry?—but the funny thing was, he was still watching her. She turned and hurried the rest of the way to Dr. Ilene and Dr. Ling.

Maddie bounced up and down beside the cart. “Do you think he’ll like it?” she whispered to Dr. Ling.

“I’m sure he will,” she answered. “As it will likely be his first brownie, I imagine he will enjoy it very much.”

Even with Dr. Ling’s reassurance, nerves that hadn’t been there at all during the past week were suddenly making Maddie fidget. What if Godzilla didn’t like chocolate at all? What if it wasn’t big enough and he barely even tasted it? What if he thought it was a stupid way for them to say thank you?

She was so distracted, she forgot to help the Chens move the cart, and they were stepping back almost too quickly, leaving her alone with the brownie. Dr. Serizawa nodded at her, and she’d promised Godzilla a surprise, so there really was no going back now. Maddie carefully pulled the wrapping off, revealing the truly massive treat.

“It’s a brownie,” she explained, because if it was his first, then he probably had never even seen one before. “It’s chocolate and delicious, and… I hope you like it.” She stepped to the side so he didn’t have to worry about knocking into her when—if—he took the brownie.

To her surprise, after a brief pause, Godzilla didn’t immediately go for the cart. Instead, he rose up enough to lean comfortably over the railing and bent to press the flat of his snout against her. And then he huffed through his nose and she felt a slight vibration through his face. It tickled a little—especially when she instinctively ducked her head and ended up with her cheek against his scales—enough to make her laugh and stop worrying.

After a second rumbly huff, he pulled back, took a moment to inspect the brownie, and then roared. It was plenty loud to Maddie, who was standing right next to him, but Dr. Serizawa would tell her later that Godzilla had been pretty quiet compared to his usual echoing roars.

As the sound trailed off, he carefully, almost delicately, plucked up the brownie with his teeth. Somehow, he managed to keep it intact until he could jerk his head back, popping it entirely into his mouth.

To Maddie’s great relief, he chewed instead of merely swallowing it whole. It was probably still super small compared to him, but Dr. Ilene had pointed out that it just barely fit on the cart as it was, and they’d been running out of ingredients anyway.

No one had to wonder for long if Godzilla enjoyed his treat, because he gave a great, full-body wiggle and _purred_. Maddie perked up with a delighted smile at the noise, because it was different than the other rumbles she’d heard him make. His spines flared brilliant blue and pulsed a few times as he swallowed.

A loud splash of water drew Maddie onto the railing, just in time to see his tail raise up and slap back down again. She laughed and looked over her shoulder at Dr. Rick and the Chens. “He liked it!” she called, feeling giddy. “He really actually liked it!”

Dr. Ilene laughed too, and Dr. Rick shook his head with a silly smile on his face.

She felt Godzilla’s looming presence again as Dr. Serizawa walked over to join her. Turning back, she beamed up at him as he gently nudged his jaw against her head. Dogs shorter than her knees had knocked themselves into her harder than this.

“You’re welcome,” she said, unable to stop smiling. “I’m glad you liked it!”

He snorted at her, and then again at Dr. Serizawa, who bowed his head a little. Maddie tried to imitate him, but she felt like she was just nodding in slow motion.

Godzilla slowly sank back into the ocean, but not without one more roar and another flare of his spines. Maddie waved enthusiastically, leaning far enough over the top bar of the railing that Dr. Serizawa made a little startled noise in his throat and reached over to keep her from going any further, until the King of Titans was completely out of sight.

Straightening up, Maddie cried, “Doc! He liked the brownie!”

Looking relieved that she was no longer half hanging over the edge of Castle Bravo, Dr. Serizawa smiled. “He did, didn’t he? It was a wonderful suggestion, Maddie. I’m sure he appreciated it very much.” 

High on the excitement and happiness, Maddie was quite literally jumping around as they headed back into the base, too wired to even think about going back to sleep just yet. A great cheer went up from the assembled group in the central hub when they walked in.

Barnes gave her a double high-five and Griffin ruffled her hair with a smile. Martinez presented a still-warm blueberry muffin to her with a flourish, and she was allowed to sit on top of one of the desks to eat it while everyone chattered around her. The footage Dr. Rick had gotten played on the big screen, and she was able to watch Godzilla take the brownie from a different view.

Dr. Ilene appeared at her side at one point and showed her a picture she’d taken, capturing a perfect image of Godzilla nuzzling against her while she laughed. “I think this would go nicely in the email to your parents,” she said, with a funny little tilt to her smile. Maddie agreed enthusiastically.

She didn’t have a phone of her own yet, but she swore to herself that once she got one, that would be her background picture.

A little while later, Dr. Serizawa proved he was probably the smartest person ever when he emerged from the crowd and scooped her up right as she was starting to think her bed sounded pretty nice.

Maddie waved over his shoulder as they left, and was perfectly pleased when more than a dozen hands raised to wave back. She slumped a little bit against Dr. Serizawa and sighed happily. “That was awesome,” she said with a little yawn.

He chuckled. “It was beyond anything I could have imagined, Maddie. Thank you.”

She hummed in acknowledgement but let her eyes drift shut a little. In no time at all, she felt the cool sheets of her bed beneath her. Her boots and sweatshirt had magically vanished, leaving her in her pajamas. Maddie forced her eyes open for a second, mumbled a good night to Dr. Serizawa as he pulled the blanket up over her, and was asleep before he could even leave the room.

(Dr. Ilene helped her write the email, complete with pictures, to her parents after a late lunch the next day. A few minutes after hitting send, her phone vibrated rapidly from a surge of incoming texts. Maddie just barely caught her dad’s name as the sender on all of them before a call came through, also from him. Dr. Ilene smiled sweetly at her as she left the room to answer it.

Grown-ups were so weird.)

**Author's Note:**

> Ilene is _this_ close to just taking Maddie off her parents’ hands. Mark briefly blacks out when he sees the pictures, which is why it took a few minutes for him to respond. 
> 
> • [my tumblr](https://star-going-supernova.tumblr.com) •


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